


Honor Among Thieves

by iamajdandagreaser



Category: Arrow (TV 2012), The Flash (TV 2014)
Genre: I Don't Even Know, Thea and James are coffee buddies, slightly AU
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-19
Updated: 2017-10-19
Packaged: 2019-01-19 19:14:10
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 906
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12416286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/iamajdandagreaser/pseuds/iamajdandagreaser
Summary: A simple misunderstanding on the part of the CCPD over a good samaritan act almost lands James Jesse in Iron Heights- again.





	Honor Among Thieves

**Author's Note:**

  * For [CatKidJen](https://archiveofourown.org/users/CatKidJen/gifts).



It's outside of Jitters, a few paces down the sidewalk, that James notices the very expensive, very red, very familiar Alexander McQueen "Heroine" tote bag, and he can't but help a smile over the irony of the bag and it's owner.

He's 99.99% sure that this abandoned bag is the same purse that Thea Dearden Queen had placed on the table in the back of Jitters a mere hour and a half before, along with a Flash coffee and an Hercule Poirot book that she'd brought for him.

Somehow, this has become a thing, James and Thea, going out for coffee every time she comes to Central City to visit Team Flash. It's completely platonic, but deep down, the Trickster does have a moral compass and secretly, the hero known as Speedy has a very strong anarchistic streak and a strong interest in explosions and eclectic fashion choices. They've somehow become friends, and their conversations cover an eclectic and catholic range of topics.

James bends down, and picks up the purse. Thea had glanced at her phone, and realizing the time, had dashed out with a rushed explanation of helping Team Flash and a quick kiss on his cheek. She must have dropped the bag in her haste to get outside.

Opening it, he finds a very familiar wallet with a very familiar picture on a driver's license, and some dark shade of lipstick that he can only assume is some kind of lethal weapon. There's all kinds of random things- tangled earbuds, a pair of headphones (why would she need both? he wonders) another book, more makeup, a wrapped package with the name Cisco Ramon on it. It's definitely Thea's, and as such, James swings the bag over his shoulder and continues on down the street.

He hasn't gone two steps when he hears a shout of "Hey!" He turns around to see an officer of the CCPD bearing down on him, and for once in his life, he has no idea what he's done to merit the attention of the law.

"Excuse me sir," the officer says, "but you're going to have to come with me."

"Why?" James asks, and has to fight the urge to say "I haven't done anything this time."

"It's a crime to steal a purse," the officer, a very firm hand on James's shoulder.

"Oh," James says, and just how that must have looked dawns on him. "Oh," he says again. "Officer, there's a mistake. This belongs to the girl I was going to coffee with at Jitters. Let me call her, and we can clear all this up."

Instead, the bag is ripped from him, and he suddenly shoved into the backseat of a cop car.

An hour later, someone comes into the cold room where he's handcuffed to a table. "Thea Queen," the detective says. "You can steal any purse in Central City, and you choose to take Thea Queen's purse." James can do nothing but sigh. 

"I want my phone call," he says.

Instead, his reputation has preceded him. The fearsome Trickster, the man who once terrorized Central City, has been locked up on the petty charge of swiping a designer handbag from Starling City's most famous socialite. There's not much he can keep doing except for asking for his phone call.

It isn't until much later that a very familiar face walks in, and James thinks to himself that he never would have expected himself to be glad to see the one and only Joe West. 

"Jesse," Detective West drawls. "You've fallen to common muggings now, is it?"

"Please," James says. "Just call Thea. Call Thea Queen. Or tell Barry Allen to call Thea Queen." He pauses at the look on Joe's face. "Better yet, tell Flash to call Speedy."

Joe's eyes narrow fractionally. "Crazy as always," he mutters, and leaves the room.

____________________

Thea's sitting on the floor with Cisco and Barry in the cortex, eating Big Belly Burger and sorting Teams Flash and Arrow into Hogwarts, when her phone starts vibrating. Seeing Joe's name appear, she frowns but answers it anyways. "Joe," she says, and both Barry and Cisco look up with confused eyes. "What's going on?"

"Do you know a James Jesse?" Joe asks. 

"Yes," Thea says slowly. "Why?"

"Because he's been arrested on charges of stealing your purse."

Thea's eyes widen, and she leaps to her feet. She hadn't even noticed that her purse was missing. "Is it a red Alexander McQueen Heroine bag?" she asks hurriedly.

"It's a red bag," Joe says. "It's got a package for Cisco in it and your driver's license."

Thea sighs. "I'll be right down."

___________________

Twenty minutes later, James is walking free from the CCPD, with Thea and her purse at his side. Turns out, the word of Thea Queen is practically law to the young, single deputies in charge of watching him, and he's sent on his way with no charges, nothing on his record, and a grudging apology from Captain Singh. 

"Have you ever considered how ironic it is that your bag is called Heroine and that it's red?" he asks when they're outside. 

Thea looks over at him with one perfect eyebrow raised. "Really?" she says dryly. "I hadn't noticed at all."

James stifles a laugh, and runs a hand through his hair. "You owe me coffee," he says simply, and Thea's relieved laugh is all the thanks he needs.

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for Jennie (CatKidJen), who has a way of making almost every conversation we have come back to James Jesse and Axel Walker (her favorite Flash characters) and Thea Queen (my favorite Arrow character) and what would happen if they knew each other. She's been begging me to write this for days, so if it's awful, blame her.


End file.
